St Budeaux Victoria Road railway station

St Budeaux Victoria Road railway station is a suburban station in St Budeaux, Plymouth, Devon, England. The station is managed and served by Great Western Railway.

History

The Devonport and South Western Junction Railway opened its St Budeaux station on 2 June 1890 with its main line from to Devonport, which gave the London and South Western Railway a route into Plymouth that was independent of the Great Western Railway. The station was close to the road to the Saltash Ferry across the River Tamar.
A connection to the Great Western Railway was installed east of the station on 21 March 1941 to offer the two companies alternative routes between Plymouth and St Budeaux should either line be closed due to bombing during World War II. On 7 September 1964 the original line into Devonport was closed, and all trains use the former Great Western route and the wartime connection to reach St Budeaux, renamed St Budeaux Victoria Road to differentiate it from, opened by the Great Western Railway on 1 June 1904. Weston Mill Halt had been the first stop on the old L&SWR line east to Plymouth Friary between 1906 and 1921.
The line from St Budeaux to was singled on 7 September 1970, services having ceased beyond there in May 1968.

Facilities

There is a single platform, on the left of trains arriving from Plymouth. The only facilities are a small waiting shelter, and timetable posters at the top of the path leading down to the station. There are no ticket buying facilities, so passengers have to buy a ticket in advance or from the guard on the train.

Services

The station is on the Tamar Valley Line from to. Services run on a basic two-hourly frequency in each direction on weekdays and Saturdays, with five each way on Sundays throughout the year and one additional evening service running between May and mid-September. Connections with main line services can be made at Plymouth.
Passengers travelling into Cornwall can change at Plymouth, and there are also a few trains from St Budeaux Ferry Road railway station, less than away.

Signalling

Trains heading towards Bere Alston must collect the branch train staff from a secure cabinet on the platform before proceeding, as the line is operated on the one train working system with only a single unit allowed on the branch at a time. Conversely, the staff has to be returned to the cabinet by the driver on the return journey before the unit can leave the branch and return to Plymouth. This operation was shown in an episode of the Channel 5 documentary series "The Railway - First Great Western" in October 2013.

Community railway

The Tamar Valley Line is designated as a community railway and is supported by marketing provided by the Devon and Cornwall Rail Partnership. Two pubs on the banks of the River Tamar at St Budeaux are part of the Tamar Valley Line rail ale trail, which is designed to promote the use of the line. The line was part of the Dartmoor Sunday Rover network of integrated bus and rail routes.